Defending state education and the public sector

Welcome back to what promises to be a very difficult year for the education service and public services in general. I spent several weeks over the summer discussing education policy with teacher trade unionists in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. I shared the Union's concerns about the academies and Free Schools programme with them. They in turn shared new research on Charter Schools with me. There are many differences between public education in the US and state school education over here but there are also many similarities and much we can learn from each other in our fight for a good local school for every child and for every community.

The term has begun with only 32 new Coalition academies opening. Of course that's 32 too many but it's a long way short of the 1100 Mr Gove announced had expressed an interest, according to his statement to the Commons in June. The first 16 so-called Free Schools which have passed the first stage have also been announced. There is a great deal of work to do to get the message out far and wide that academies and Free Schools are not the way forward. Look out for a new Union publication: Free Schools: Beyond the Spin of Government Policy. It provides authoritative evidence that free state comprehensive education is the way to organise education for the good of the whole society.

At the TUC Congress next week the ATL and NUT will move and second a composite motion on academies. It calls for a concerted campaign by all education unions. In the NUT we look forward to working with our colleagues in other unions.

This is, of course, the time of year when we are most obviously in recruitment mode. We know that "no one ever asked me" is the most common response from people who haven't yet joined a union. Let's make sure we ask every teacher who comes into our staffrooms and classrooms to join us in the NUT.

A significant campaign for all of us this term will be to work with and through the TUC in defence of public sector pensions. Again the Union will be speaking in the debate at the TUC Congress on this.

With so many attacks on the public sector there will be a great deal to do this term. The Union will be joining both ATL and NASUWT to hold joint fringe meetings at all the party conferences. The key task at the Lib Dem conference will be to expose the differences opening up among their ranks on Free Schools and academies. Come and join the rally if you can get to the Liverpool on Sunday September 19th at 12 noon. Look out for further information on the NUT website.

Christine Blower
General Secretary
8 September 2010

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